Feeder Elf

We have an elf, a kindly woodland sprite, that comes and fills our bird feeders each evening at dusk. We rarely see this Puck-like creature, who visits in the gloaming to make sure that our birds wake up to feeders full of tasty good things to eat. And to make sure that we wake up to feeders teeming with birds.

Tonight I left my digital camera trained on our feeding station, rigged with a sensor to record any movement. These are the amazing images I captured.

As you can see from the body language and the headgear, this is clearly an elf, probably from one of the Appalachian species of sprites partial to mixed deciduous woods. The camera recorded no sound, but our kids, who witnessed this visitation from the studio windows, distinctly remember hearing the elf singing two complete verses of "Take It Easy" by Jackson Browne. If that doesn't cinch the ID I don't know what will.

Perhaps if I put a team together and comb the woods for the next 12 months I might find a nest or roost cavity.

Or maybe it's best to let this chimera live on in our imaginations? After all, I LIKE having my feeders filled up each evening.

O blasted conundrum.